The CLA Game Fair, held in association with The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph, runs from 23 - 25 July and will be host to the largest gathering of Hawk, Falconry and Owl clubs from in the country.
Part of the daily displays in The Game Fair's main arena will be a re-enactment of the falconry section of the Book of St Albans. The Book, which was published in 1486, covered matters of falconry, hunting, and heraldry and was written to aid the gentry in navigating their favourite hobbies. The Game Fair interpretation is designed to be an entertaining and educational pageant produced by the Hawk Board in conjunction with falconry clubs and will include working displays with falcons, hawks, eagles and gundogs.
The Game Fair's Falconry Village is the largest event of its kind and includes representative organisations from all over the UK, a mini-ring, an exhibition of over 30 breeds of birds and expert falconers who will be on hand to answer questions about the practical aspects of keeping, training and flying falcons and hawks and explain the vital role the sport fulfils in conserving these lovely birds.
For established falconers there will be a chance to buy everything they need for their sport within a specialist trade area featuring some of the best makers of falconry furniture in Europe and for the beginners There are training and advisory clinics for would be falconers and an opportunity for Game Fair visitors to handle the birds under close supervision - it's the point, say organisers, at which people become hooked on this ancient sport.
The Falconry displays have become one of the most popular events at The CLA Game Fair with the birds alternately showing off their high speed 'stoops' on to the lure - or occasionally sitting stubbornly in the nearest tree. This year The Hawk Board will be putting on displays in the Main Arena demonstrating the breathtaking flying skills of the
falcons, the wiliness of the hawks and, on occasion, the stubborn side to these magnificent birds.
"It does offer a unique opportunity for visitors to find out everything they need to know about these amazing birds and this ancient sport - and it provides a marvellous opportunity for people to actually handle a hawk and to learn all about what it means to become a falconer. For anybody who has never had the opportunity to see these magnificent birds in action, it’s a spectacle not to be missed," said David Hough, The CLA Game Fair's Director.